The Calling
by Amberz-Eyez
Summary: All of Camp Half Blood and Camp Jupiter must unite to face an evil greater than Gaea and Kronos combined. New powers and gods are unleashed as a fierce struggle between good and evil begins. The future of the world lays in the hands of these demigods, but is it enough? And in the end can they rise above the dark and accept their Calling?
1. Chapter 1

'_Annabeth . . . Annabeth . . .' _a voice whispered in the darkness._ Who is that?_ I thought.I groaned and pulled the soft pillow over my head. 'Can I not get some sleep?!' I said into my pillow. Silence. No one answered. _Odd, _I thought, _I could have sworn that . . ._ A sharp knock at the cabin door awakened me into full alertness. I sat up quickly poised to defend myself if necessary. I glanced around the cabin. Everyone else was asleep. Nobody stirred, nobody else had heard the knock. All the maps and war charts I had hung strategetically around my bunk, hung peacefully undisturbed. _Must have been the wind._ I sighed and was just pulling the covers up to my chin when the incessant knock came once more. I froze.

There was definitely someone or _something_ at the door. Chills raced up and down my back as the hair on my neck began to raise. _Be brave Annabeth! You're a daughter of Athena! _I said chidingly to myself. I purposefully stepped out of my bed and slipped into my worn brown leather boots. I quickly pulled on my one pair of blue jeans. I slipped into my jacket that covered my orange camp half-blood t-shirt. I glanced around quickly. All my half brothers and sisters were sleeping, some snoring softly. _If this is one of Percy or the Stoll brother's pranks . . ._I thought to myself, thinking of all the ways I would repay their 'kind' visit. I shook my head. I fumbled for my pillow and zipped open the pillow case. Out fell my knife which I caught nimbly. It glinted metallic gold in the dark light.

I tiptoed over to the cabin door which was held up by Doric columns. I'm currently studying architecture and knowing Ionic, Doric, and Corinthian columns is coming in quite helpful for designing new structures. I touched the brass doorknob. It was freezing. I opened the door and a cold blast of air tousled my blond hair. It didn't matter, my hair was probably a mess already. Anyways, worrying about appearances was the Aphrodite's cabins job! 'Percy you can come out now!' I whispered angrily. No answer. I stepped outside and the door slammed shut behind me.

'Ha ha ha. Hilarious.' I said sarcastically. 'Alright you've had your fun, now come out!' I said raising my voice to room level. Still no answer. I stomped around the corner of the cabin, expecting to see someone standing there. No one at all. The blank marble wall stared back at me. I shivered, the temperature was dropping by the minute. Below me, because the Athena cabin is on a hilly slope, I saw the Hermes, Aphrodite, Zeus, Posiedon, and newly built minor god and goddess cabins. Down lower was the forest and the Big House where Chiron lives. The lake sparkled to my left. _'Annabeeetthhh . . . Aaanabethh . . .' _a voice like the wind murmured. I pulled out my knife and said in a shaky voice, 'Who's there? Answer me!'

A soft, warm wind blew in around me. _'It's fine child. Lay down your weapon. I mean you no harm. I-'_ 'Oh? You mean me no harm? How do I know that?' I bit back angrily, bluffing to hide my fear. I heard a sound like soft whispers and rustling leaves. The wind was laughing. _'Annabeth Chase, you do so humor me. I do not in any way wish you harm, but you must trust me on my word. After all, I have some important . . . information from higher sources you most desperately need.' _I narrowed my eyes.

'How can I place trust in someone not even visible to me?' The wind stilled. _'If I do remember correctly, is your fatal flaw not hubris? Too much pride? The only way to cure hubris is with trust and honesty. Do you wish to fix your flaw? If so, meet at the lake.' _I shook my head and rolled my eyes, kicking at the dirt. This apparition's reference to my flaw was stinging and humiliating. As I turned to go, the voice said, _'Annabeth, do not take this offer lightly. You will soon realize you need my services and it will be to late. _I stopped and turned. The wind stilled. _'Oh . . . and do you enjoy riddles my child?'_ 'What kind of riddle?' _'Riddle me not, riddle me woe, I'm hiding under the giants toe. When finally the tiny mouse roars, you shall unleash the wild boars. Tame a beast and say its name thrice and you will understand my price.'_

I laughed. 'And- Wait a moment! Hello? Hello?' The wind had settled down again. I grit my teeth and blew noisily through my lips. I felt a knot of emotions in my stomach twist and turn as I thought out my decision. I had one obvious choice as much as I hated the idea. Before I could stop to think, I made a rash decision and ran down towards the lake.


	2. Chapter 2

The next morning . . .

I woke up to a sharp knocking on my cabin door. _I wish it was the Papa John's pizza guy . . . _I thought. I groaned and said from under my covers, 'Who is it?'. 'Percy, its me!' said the voice sounding strangely familiar. 'Me who?' I said back to the door grinning. I jumped out of my bed and splashed some cold water on my face from the golden fountain located directly in the middle of my room. I slipped on my orange camp half-blood t-shirt and went to open the door. I found a surprise waiting at the door for me that can only be described as . . . goat-like. 'Grover!' I said slinging my arm around his shoulder in a very, _very_ 'manly' hug. 'P-percy!' he bleated, obviously ecstatic to see me.

'So what brings you to camp half-blood?' I ask smiling like an idiot. Then I see Grover's eyes darken and my smiles fades. See, Grover can really only be described as goat-like because well . . . he may just happen to be half-goat. He's a satyr with curly brown hair, dark skin, small horns, and if he asks if you want to hear a tune on his pipes, I suggest covering your ears or running. _Very_ fast.

Anyways, after catching that look in his eyes, it could mean only one thing. Bad news. Grover nervously wrung his hands, trying to wipe his sweaty palms on his goat fur. 'W-well I . . . uh . . . have some news for Chiron', he said not looking me in the eye. I sighed. 'Grover, how come every single time you appear, you have bad news that ends up in me going on a quest, battling a monster, and then ending up barely alive?' I said laughing sarcastically and shaking my head. It may sound mean, but trust me. It is way truer than anything else I've ever said, and no way was I going on any quest right after returning from Camp Jupiter!

Camp Jupiter . . . even the thought of the place gave me a headache. After seeing Annabeth and having the campers see each other . . . and then having only a week to come up with a plan to battle Gaea . . . It was more stress than I could handle, and I deal with a lot of stress. Then I remembered Grover was there. 'Okay, let me guess. I can't know what this news is until after I've already almost died, and now you have to go and tell Chiron?' Grover looked at me apologetically. 'Percy, man, I really am sorry. But . . . you know . . .' I felt bad now. 'Look, it's no biggie okay? Hey, want to go canoeing before you go . . . give that news to Chiron?' Grover smiled shakily.

I knew that this time the news had to be bad. Grover even when giving bad news, generally didn't look this bad. In fact, he looked a bit sick with his cheek bones protruding form his face and his hair a curly leafy mess. Okay well it generally looked like that but still . . . I shook my head. 'Just give me one minute to get ready and then lets go get Annabeth to come with us'. I brightened at the thought of Annabeth. I closed the cabin door and quickly cleaned, dressed in jeans and a shirt, and put my golden pen Riptide into my pocket. Yep, my weapon is a pen. Very heroic.

I opened the door and Grover and I headed towards the Athena cabin. The sky was just turning pink when I noticed it was really early in the morning. The forest was still alive with the sound of chirping crickets and the occasional rustle of something larger. The lake was covered in mist and the cabin were quiet, save for the Ares cabin which was always noisy. _I'll get breakfast later, _I thought. My mind fell to Annabeth. Annabeth . . . Awkward enough to say, but she had ah . . . been my girlfriend for the past while . . . as in a year. I glanced over at Grover.

It was evident enough that he really was freaking out about something. I studied him carefully. His eyes were bleary like he had just seen a ghost and his hands were shaking. He was mumbling something. I nudged him. 'Hey, want to prank Annabeth?' I said with an evil grin. Grover nodded raising an eyebrow. We crept along the side of the Athena cabin. The cabin wasn't bad looking with tall arched columns and gold laurel trimmings. The cabin was a creamy pastel white inlaid with small statues with arched windows all around its sides. Grover eased open a window and we crept in. The whole place was covered in maps, armor, bulletin boards, and strategist equipment. There were small tables plastered in piles of books and papers.

Grover glanced over his shoulder and he put his rasta cap on his head. I crept in front of him and gave him a short hand single. He nodded and we crept sideways around all the bunks to Annabeth's. I saw a lump in the bed, and nodded. Grover and I pounced shouting, 'Wake up call!' and . . . fell on nothing. I glanced around the room at the stirring campers. I felt only pillows in my hands. 'What the-?' I said to Grover who was just as surprised. And we then chorused at the same time, 'Where's Annabeth?'


	3. Chapter 3

My heart was thumping as I ran down the grassy slopes. The reason may have had something to do with oh I don't know, maybe running towards either A. important information about defeating Gaea and saving the world (again) or B. an embarrassing painfully excruciating death for trusting a stranger I couldn't even see. The sky was still dark and sprinkled with stars but the moon was sinking behind the horizon. In the east, the sky was dark purple but was tinged with pink and orange. I didn't have much time left.

I flew past the Aphrodite's, Hermes, Zeus, Hades, Poseidon, and minor gods cabins. My leather boots were slick with dew from the thick grass. All of the sudden I was past the Big House and in the forest. My breathing was ragged so I slowed my pace to a steady jog. Evergreen trees loomed ahead of me, casting strange shadows on my arms and face. I turned sharply to the left, laves crunching beneath my feet. I picked up my pace as the trees thinned out and I emerged at the lake. I took a deep breath of cold air. I was ready.


End file.
